How to Identify Market Opportunities for Business Growth

The global economy has always been volatile, however modern day technologies and scientific advances have shortened the life cycles of various products and services, disrupting the traditional business model, and giving rise to more competition.

In this scenario of constant competition and instability, it becomes all the more important to seek out fresh business opportunities to take your business to the next level and create another profit avenue. Here, we review 3 ways to identify the market conditions, turn the challenges into opportunities and give a boost to your business.

Recognise Consumer Segmentation

In order to understand your business demands better, it is important to identify consumer segments sharing common attributes. These attributes can be determined by taking into consideration a combination of hard and soft variables like age, place of residence, gender, occupation, annual income, lifestyle, purchasing motivations and more.

The hard variables like annual income and demographics can help you get an estimated number of potential consumers your business can acquire. For example, if you own a retail store and want to open a new outlet in a new city, you need to review data like the number of people living in the city, along with their occupation and annual income. Additionally, determining soft variables like lifestyle choices can help you identify the motivations that might lead to a purchasing decision.

Identify and Analyse Competition

After you have recognised your prospective consumers and segmented them, it is important to know and analyse the competition. Learning about the existing players within your niche is crucial to evaluate the challenges and opportunities. While you are analysing the competition, there are some relevant questions you need to ask yourself:

• Which products or brands in your industry are popular and profitable and the reason behind it?
• What are the core value propositions of your competitors?
• What is the competitive advantage you can get over other players?

Analyse the Purchase Situation

Purchasing patterns, behaviour and power are three important points that determine whether your product or service will be successful. Analysing purchasing situations will help you get a better perspective. If you want to shift gears to growth mode, asking the following questions will help you review the purchase situation:

• When do the majority of people buy your products or services?
• Do they buy the commodity because they need it or are there other motivations?
• Where do people make their purchases and what mode of payment do they usually use?

Additionally, looking at the distribution channels, payment methods and other situations that can affect purchasing decisions helps you know how and what the consumer buys and the best way to position your product.